As soon as the cells are completed, the mother lays an egg in each. From these eggs little grubs or larvæ are hatched. They are fed by the mother until they become pupæ. The cells are sealed over while the wasps are in the pupa state. They have to break open the seals before they can come out. All members of the first brood are workers. As soon as they are hatched the mother has nothing to do but to provide eggs. They clean out the cells in which they passed their early days; they make additions to the nests; they take care of the young. Do you remember how the vespa workers prepared food for the larvæ in their colony and what they fed them? The young polistes are cared for in the same way. You may see the workers flying about in your garden this summer, getting the sweets from the various flowers that you have planted. You will know why they are so busy through the long sunny days. You will think of the hungry little wasps waiting for their dinner. You will wonder whether they put their heads out of the cells when the workers feed them. NEST OF POLISTES. 1. Compare the nest of polistes with that of vespa. 2. In what ways do they differ? 3. Where did you find the nest? 4. How was it held in place? 5. How many cells are there in it? 6. Notice the pieces of the seals which still remain on the nest. Tell us whether they are made of the same material as the cells. Of what utility are the seals? LEAFLET LXXIV. SOME CARPENTER ANTS AND THEIR KIN.[95] BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY. (Compare Leaflet XXI.) [95] Junior Naturalist Monthly, October, 1903. [Illustration] One bright August morning, as we were walking along the edge of a wood, we found an old tree trunk lying on the ground. I am sure it had been there a long time. Large pieces of bark were loose enough to be lifted up; being naturalists, we took advantage of this fact to see whether anything was living underneath. What queer little outdoor folk we found: "thousand-legged worms," sow-bugs, a black beetle that looked as if its back were made of patent-leather, and best of all a colony of ants! These ants were large black ones known as carpenter ants. They had made very comfortable quarters in this old log. How alarmed they were when we so rudely exposed them to the light! One brave ant impressed me more than any other member of the colony. I wish that all of our girls and boys might have seen it. With my knife I commenced to cut down the wall of one of the rooms to see what was inside. The soldier-like ant stood near and, instead of running away, it attacked the large steel blade with its jaws. Was not that a brave thing to do? Are you surprised that I closed the knife and put it into my pocket?